Ten reasons to quit smoking before you’re 30 years old

by stephen on October 2, 2009

We all know that smoking is bad for you. Welcome to reality. However, it is one of the most difficult things to stop and many smokers who started young are starting to realize that cigarettes have become a part of their daily lives causing all kinds of stink, health problems, and making that 6 hour plane flight an anxiety ridden fidgety wait.

If you’re a younger smoker out there strutting around smoking because you know you’ll quit before you’re 30 guess what? You probably won’t.

Here are 10 reasons you should take extra special care and stop kidding yourself into thinking that because you are young you’ll figure it out. After all, at this age you probably think you have it all figured out anyways right?

1 – You’ll have more flexibility and less responsibility before you are 30.

It may not seem like it. Some of you might be doctors in the making, building a career in law, or just trying to get keep bills paid. Whatever it is you are doing, you have less responsibility now than you ever will. It sucks but that’s the reality. Take advantage and don’t use stress as a reason to smoke. It will only become an excuse for many years.

2 –Don’t start your life with old habits.

You might not be married yet, but might as you near 30. Don’t start your whole life out with a habit you have always wanted to end. It will only work that habit into the next phase of your life and pretty soon you’ll die at 60 leaving your grandkids without a part of family they had once adored.

3 – You will cut down your dating opportunities.

As lame as it sounds, there are a lot of women and men who just plain won’t date a smoker. So, you’re seriously going to choose smoking over getting laid or finding the right person? Really.

4 - Your health risks will return to normal while still young.

By 40-45 years old (depending on when you quit), your risk of cancer, coronary heart disease, heart attack, and stroke will be the same as if you never smoked before. I know it sounds like you’d be old as hell by the time that happens but trust us older folks, 40 is young. You’re looking at almost half your life ahead of you at that age (if you don’t smoke).

5 – You are just beginning to build a lifestyle.

After college, you begin to build out your daily lifestyle and studies show that what we eat and do for a few years after College ends up sticking with us for the rest of our lives. Don’t set yourself in ways that you won’t want to keep with you.

6 – It is easier to quit when young.

There’s no magic math here, the longer you are hooked on Nicotine the harder it is to quit. This is both psychological and physical, so why not do yourself a favor if you eventually plan on quitting, get it done now. It will be easier now than ever again.

7 – You’ll enjoy one of the best parts of your life more.

Sorry about getting so teary and bleary on you but its true. Smoking makes everything worse and you should enjoy the crap out of these years since you’ll never have them again. Having your mood dependent on sporadic doses of dopamine being surged into your brain from a smoldering bit of chemical laden garbage with paper wrapped around it exactly the time of your life.

8 – Its not cool anymore.

This isn’t the 50’s, 60’s or 70’s and it certainly isn’t high school anymore. If it ever really was cool to smoke, it isn’t now. You don’t look any cooler, tougher, or more badass. You just look like a person that needs their fix and might have some unresolved childhood issues. The latter still might be true but you have a lot of years to figure it out, just figure it out after you quit. It might actually be a lot easier then anyways.

9 – You won’t look like you’re 50 when you’re 40 years old

Yeah, this is pretty much to be expected but its true. Some people age faster than others while smokers age faster than everybody else. Do you really want those little wrinkles around your mouth that show everybody you’ve been puffing on a cigarette for 30 years? It might sound like a small thing compared to others but the earlier you quit the less damage is done to your skin by smoking. Smoking delivers a load of free radicals to your body. These are the things that cause widespread damage on your body including the breakdown of collagen in your skin. Collagen is what keeps skin and other tissues “stretchy” and nice. Breaking that down means more wrinkles, saggy skin, and basically looking like you’re several years older than you are.

10 – Your sex life will be better.

Whether you are a man or woman, not smoking means a healthier body. Healthier bodies mean higher libido, feeling better, and more stamina. Why would you want to waste your youthful “exuberance” on walking or driving to the store to buy cigarettes when you could just have sex instead? In all seriousness, smoking definitely affects people below the belt one way or another and it only gets worse with age especially if you are a man and end up with peripheral artery disease (smoking can help lead to this). PAD is one of the reasons Viagra has indications for people who might have some form of cardiovascular disease aren’t getting enough blood flow down there.

So, if you’re under 30 and think that no matter what you’ll eventually quit, do it now. You’re planning to later right? Might as well get it done with forever before you end up with all kinds of issues that could have been prevented if you just got to it while you were young.

I myself also started smoking because it looked so cool when I was a teen and I have been hooked with smoking almost 15 years so far. Lately I had a heart problem and it really hit me hard about my health. I tried quitting, but it just didn’t last more than 3 days. Seriously it was always the third day when I broke down and started to smoke again.
I haven’t used any pills or patches to quit yet, but I might as well try anything to help me to quit.

Anybody here used any products to quit smoking? What is the best product that you used that worked well?

I tried nicorette (gum) and Nicoderm (patch) before. Chewing gum for me was like temporary thing, meaning it didn’t work that well. I found that Nicoderm was pretty helpful to get rid the of habit of putting a cigarette in my mouth. I guess that’s how you start.
I failed though.
I’m still trying to quit but I tend to smoke when I drink since I enjoy drinking so much. That’s actually my next challenge. How can I stop myself from craving cigarettes while I drink?
Maybe I should stay away from drinking for a while, but I honestly don’t see it coming.

Good for you on at least trying to quit. I’ve heard and seen much better results with the patch than the gum. My advice on the drinking thing is…just avoid it for the first few weeks if possible. If you do drink, try to drink somewhere without smokers around and keep eating.

Eating definitely helps!!
A lot of people just drink without eating food, but it actually really helps you not to smoke if you keep munching while you drink.
For me veggie platter is the best bar food to stay away from smoking while I drink.

Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic. If possible, as you gain expertise, would you mind updating your blog with more information? It is extremely helpful for me.